Can Laughter Really Cure Dry Eyes: Separating Truth & Fad

Serena S
3 min readSep 25, 2024

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Being chronically online comes with a high cost of poor eye health. The most common eye condition witnessed among adults is dry eyes, where they suffer from watery eyes and light sensitivity. If your symptoms are different, like redness or eye strain, it still does not rule out the possibility that you may have dry eyes.

Until you visit a dry eye clinic near you, it’s best not to start any therapy or medications without first consulting a specialist. However, a new study published in BMJ (British Medical Journal) claims that laughter can indeed help alleviate certain symptoms. But to what extent?

All About The Modern Dry Eyes Cure — Laughter

A recent study published in BMJ makes two critical claims related to dry eye condition and its symptoms.

The first claim states that laughter helps with improving tear film stability and the functioning of the meibomian gland.

The second claim, unsurprisingly, claimed no adverse effects were noticed or reported after twelve weeks of study.

Yes. The Laughter cure for dry eyes study also improved ocular surface health better than eye drops, but it was after eight weeks. During the period, the 299 patients with symptomatic dry eye disease who participated had to repeat a laughter phrase 30 times per five-minute session.

As ludicrous as it may sound, the study did present promising results, and it was led by Jing Li and published finally on September 11th.

Can Dry Eyes Be Cured?

No. Dry eyes cannot be completely cured, but they can be managed effectively with the help and support of an experienced dry eye specialist near you.

Contrary to the immensely positive results of the study, several eye specialists note that laughter therapy can be a stretch. In a direct comparison, using eye drops may be more convenient, possibly also being better for patients with severe DED (dry eye disease).

Laughter Therapy for Dry Eyes: Is It For You?

Although there is no fad in the successful study of laughter therapy, it still lacks additional research, particularly regarding its effectiveness for severe DED patients.

The only way to identify if you have severe or mild DED symptoms is by getting an eye test from a trained optometrist. Sure, you may also use a kiosk test, but it’s highly recommended to visit an eye specialist.

For comparison, the tests conducted by an eye doctor will also check for retinal health and eye pressure, among other eye problems. Parallelly, the eye clinic will also likely have state-of-the-art equipment and solutions to handle various eye care symptoms and conditions.

How Often Should You Get Your Eyes Tested in 2030?

Considering the collective overuse of screens and bright displays in daily life, everyone should get an eye examination at least once every year. Even if you do not experience eye strain, redness, or any other symptoms (thankfully), taking care of your eyes can pay off big time.

Eye conditions like macular degeneration and glaucoma can be prevented up till an age by maintaining positive eye care habits. Please ask your eye doctor about the best eye care practices as they can better determine the correct requirements suitable for your eyes.

Moreover, to close this out on an alarming note, the timeline for macular degeneration and similar severe eye conditions has shifted early. In perspective, what usually happens by the age of 60 is now witnessed in adults between 50–55 years of age.

Isn’t it best to start taking your eye health seriously from today onwards?

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Serena S
Serena S

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